Former Permanent Secretaries to Take New Plea

Dr Badara Loum and Suruwa Jaiteh former Permanent Secretaries at the Department of State for Agriculture are expected to take a new plea on the new information brought against them.

When their case resumed last Thursday before Justice Joseph Wowo of the Banjul High Court, the accused persons where informed of the new information brought against them which they need to take a plea.

The case was hence adjourned to 8th April 2009.

It could be recalled that the accused persons, were previously charged with Economic Crime. The statement of the offence are that the accused persons wilfully or by omission or recklessly, between April 2005 and December 2006 caused monetary loss to a public body contrary to section 5(a) of the Economic crime Decree 1994 (Decree No 16) which ispunishable under section 6 of the same decree.

The particulars of the offence stated that Dr Badara Loum and Suruwa Jaiteh, as permanent secretaries of the Department of State for Agriculture between the months of April 2005 and December 2006, being the counting officers thereof and entrusted with the responsibility of distributing and selling of 4,775 metric tones of NPK and 2,229 metric tones of Urea fertilizer valued at D51, 480,100, wilfully or by omission, recklessly handled some of the fertilizers and thereby caused loss to the Government of The Gambia to the tune of D6,340,845 ( six million, three hundred and forty thousand, eight hundred and forty-five dalasis).